I don't know why my 7mo is frequently feeding at night, but it does have to stop! Can anyone help??

[sorky]

She hit 7mo, started having a bit more food, hasn't decreased the day feeds, but has increased night feeding to 2 hourly.
She feeds at 7pm and sleeps until about 11pm, that's fine. BUT then again (always just one side) at 1am, 4am and 6am.
She won't eat breakfast, but feeds again at 10.30am.

I'm bloody shattered.

We still co-sleep because she was waking everyone else up crying in the night to be fed when we tried putting her in her cot. Plus I get even less sleep traipsing across the landing to get her

What can we do? I need to sleep, I have 3 others to parent all day too.

[Horton]

www.livingcontrolsystems.com/wonder_weeks/content_ww.html

I think it's quite interesting and the book predicted my daughter's particularly irritating challenging weeks fairly accurately.

[Horton]

11-4 and 7 sounds really good, sorky. Long may it continue!

Also, in an effort to make you both feel better, has anyone ever heard of wonder weeks? It's about the developmental thing and waking etc and I had the book and found it really interesting and comforting when DD was small as it seemed to really fit what was going on. Will try and find a good link in a bit but must go and put DD to bed.

[sorky]

here here Shanster!

Can't lsiten to anymore crying
If she isn't traumatised by it, then I certainly will be!

She has stretched them out a little bit, going from 11pm-4am or thereabouts, then again at 7am...I can happily live with that.

I'm not worrying about the food, she'll eat if she's hungry as long as she's BF that's the main thing.

Thanks everyone

[Shanster]

sorky, I have been reading all these replies with interest (I posted earlier, my DD does the same thing). I have decided to just go with it - she is not interested in solids, and clearly prefers to get her milk at night (I work full time). Life is too short to listen to a baby cry in an effort to 'sleep train'.

[logrrl]

sorky after about 12 weeks of DS (6months) waking every 60 mins (at its worst) to 2 hourly for feeds, this week he's started to stretch them out...we are now at at 3-3.5 hourly ...so there is light in that tunnel, honest!
After the months of night feeding, I of course am still waking multiple times, very confused as to what the hell is going on and last night had a terrible anxiety dream about being on a long journey trying to get home to DS, because I knew he would be needing fed and I was the only one who could do it...

[WoTmania]

Glitz - if you swap water for milk at this stage a) you are still getting up to give her something, and, b)if she's hungry you're just filling her tummy up not giving her calories.

Sorky - I'm only on 3 but I've felt that same way. No clue whatever what I did with the previous baby/ies. Then again they've all been so different that maybe that's a good thing.

Horton - I agree with everything you said in your last post.

[Horton]

You know, Maria, I don't think it is mental to treat a 7 month old not so very much differently from a newborn. Yes, they grow and develop very fast at that age, but just think about it! SEVEN MONTHS OLD! It's tiny. Totally understand that people with other children to deal with have to find a way to cope but a seven month old is a tiny tiny baby.

And waking once or twice a night is totally normal for a baby of this age. It's not very nice and it's no fun for the poor parent who has to get up but it is actually completely normal. The idea of night-weaning a seven month old completely seems to me nearly as mad as those people who come on MN and go 'is eight weeks too young for some baby rice?' and then get all shirty when people say yes.

Giltz, your baby wants milk. Giving it to her would be a good idea, IMO.

[Giltz]

My DD has never slept through in her 6.5 months of living. I would actualy kill for a full nights sleep. She wakes once or twice a night just now, I think it is a growth spurt.

Tried swapping milk for water and this was a disaster, It would take two hours just to settle her.

Please let me know if you find a solution.

Good luck

[Maria2007]

One size fit all would be booooooooring

[sorky]

I have valued your perspective Maria.

If only it were as easy as one size fits all babies eh? LIfe would be much easier.

It never ceases to amaze me that I'm on no4 and still don't have a clue , or maybe I did I just have a crap memory....from lack of sleep

Try again tonight I suppose.

I will have a look at the sleep threads, thanks.

PT can't swim I'm afraid. Chatted to Dh about it and we will have to sort out some time, probably on a weekend for me to get out for a couple of miles. I do think it'll make a difference. It might make the sleep I do get better quality

[Maria2007]

I have no stake in the matter. Nor do I believe of course that 'all babies should do the same thing at the same time'. (not sure where you got that from). I just don't believe 7 month olds actually need feeding 2-3 times a night. If you do, & you're ok with waking that often, as if a 7 month old is a newborn, fine.

[Maria2007]

Yes I have one child. He used to be the most appalling sleeper ever (until 9 months when we decided to make a plan & do something about it). Now he sleeps mostly through the night- since 9 months- but of course he does have his bad nights, as I think is normal for babies / children (e.g. yesterday was really bad!) The experience with my DS, but also the experience of many friends, taught me 2 things. First, that there's a lot to be done (in various ways, depending what suits the parents) to help with sleep problems. Second, that children do not necessarily outgrow sleep problems & that it's futile in some cases to wait for that elusive day where they will 'outgrow' their night waking.

[WoTmania]

Oh and Sorky, maybe posting in the sleep section too would help. They might have some other suggestions.

[WoTmania]

missed out an 'is' there.

[WoTmania]

And I believe it biologically normal for them to wake this often at this stage.

As for good sleepers/bad sleepers...I'm going to assume from that that you only have the one child . Hopefully if you have any more you won't get one (like DS1) who makes you change your mind.

[Maria2007]

(meant to say if it were me- an adult- waking that often....ggggggrrrr when will MN provide that editing function?!)

[Maria2007]

I completely disagree with the idea of 'bad sleepers' and 'good sleepers' but I don't feel my input is that popular in this particular thread... All this talk of waking up in the night due to hunger sounds just slightly mad to me, I'm sorry to say. As for adults waking for water, no, I don't regularly wake for water in the night, certainly not 2-3 times a night! I do from time to time- lets say once every month. Usually it's because I wake for other reasons & then I have a drink of water too. The same pattern goes for my DS too (he's 14 months). He wakes sometimes (I would say on average once a week or once every 10 days) during the night- not more than once- for other reasons e.g. teething, having a cold, just wanting a cuddle, and some of these times we do give him a bit of water / milk to settle him. I'm not heartless, I do go to him & give him a drink whenever I genuinely feel he needs it, but to me it sounds completely illogical that a 7 month old or 1 year old would wake that often- 2-3 times per night- purely due to hunger! If it were me (and adult) waking that often due to hunger / thirst I would go to my GP! I also can't get my head around the idea that so many parents seem to actually want to believe this is hunger & not just habit. I wonder what the good is- for anyone- in all this night waking?! Why continue with it if there are easy, gentle, gradual ways to get rid of it and soon? Anyway, boggles my mind....

So my sympathies to Sorky. I think the 1 feed a night is already a huge improvement & must be more manageable.My best of luck with the whole thing, hope it gets better soon! It seems you're on the right track

[WoTmania]

8 weeks 9 weeks and 7mo

DS1 started sleeping through reliably at 3.1 years - DD arrived when he was 3.2 years
I think you just had good sleepers with the others. Maye I should consider myself lucky that DC1 was the truly awful sleeper so that is my expectation.

[sorky]

no not really, but it's a vicious cycle isn't it?

I love to run, it makes me feel great, but I can't manage it atm because I just don't have the energy to do it, because I don't get any sleep.
I'm waiting for that little chink of light when I can break the cycle of exhaustion.
I reckon it might come when she's about 2yo

Thanks for all the suggestions

[sorky]

Well my other 3 children went through the night from 8weeks, 9weeks and 7mo. All were bf, the last one we co-slept with for longer, so I suppose that's why he took longer to drop the night feed.

I don't find it hard to understand, I just find it hard.